I'm in a polyamorous marriage. Polyamory means a lot of things to a
lot of people, and I acknowledge the term can come with a touch of
baggage. I'm not involved with anyone other than my wife right now,
but I'm open to new friends.

I like to write (usually F/SF, with the occasional horror element).
I read voraciously. I am always curious to hear new genres of
music.

I find enthusiasm very catching -- I love hearing people who are
passionate about things they do talk about it, even if it's not my
hobby. I've talked writing with other writers, of course, but I've
talked clay and glazes with potters, yarn with crotcheters, and
security systems with cypherpunks.

I'm a pretty big dork -- I play video games, I watch anime, I sing
on Rock Band with no sense of shame -- but I am happy to unplug,
walk in the forest, and talk about the unseen things in our lives.
Duty. Right action. The elusive nature of freedom. And then dive
back into the world, because I love the world and all there is to
see and do in it.

"All things strive." That's a line of dialogue from Hex, a
fictional sort-of-computer in Terry Pratchett's Hogfather.
For reasons I can't concisely articulate, that line resonates
deeply. All things strive. So that is what I do.

"I'm an excellent critic! I automatically know when someone's done
a bad job. Before you ask, yes, it's a mixed blessing." Achewood, August 1, 2005.
Okay, not really. Pat's a jerk, and I hope I'm not.

I'm good at making media references. I'm good at talking. I'm good
at listening, but it turns out that 'writing a lot of words about
yourself' is a terrible way to showcase your listening skills, so I
can understand if you're a bit skeptical about that one at this
point.

I like to dance. I won't say I'm good at it -- I have no
formal ballroom traning, alas -- but on a free-form floor I do what
the beat tells me to, and a dance partner once said I'm good. So
that's kind of a data point?

I'm good enough at turning Nerd into English that people pay me to
do it professionally. I'm a technical writer by trade, which
satisfies my technical curiosity and my love of language.

Terry
Pratchett -- I found it fascinating to watch his work evolve
from humorist to satirist. Going Postal may be my
favorite, displacing long-term title-holder Feet of Clay.
While my brother, whom I love, is a Vimes man through and through,
my kindred spirit in the Pratchettverse is, for better or for
worse, Moist von Lipwig.

American Beauty was the first film I've ever seen where
the uses of foreshadowing, symbology, and fancy tricks with
narrative structure were used not to show us that someone was
paying attention in film class, but because they were the best
tools to tell this particular story. Astonishing work.

Kill Bill, to turn to a different bit of myth-making, is
an excellent folktale about the ascension of a Fury.

Leverage is a deeply, deeply silly TV show, but it just
manages to hit my brain's off switch every time and I manage to
enjoy it as a consequence.

Titus, Better off Ted, and Pushing
Daisies -- all too good to last. Pour out a 40 for them.

Madoka Magica may well be the finest 12 episodes of anime
I've seen in 5 years. A serious deconstruction of magical girl
tropes, and taut storytelling.

By contrast, Tengen Toppan Gurren Lagann is a
deconstruction-by-hyperbole of the Burning Manly Vigor-style giant
robot anime narrative, but done unironically and with a clear love
of the source. It's a blast to watch.

The nature of fun.
The nature of happiness.
How to be happy -- it's not an intuitive process for most people,
and learning how to be happy can be paradoxically not-fun.
The consequences of different definitions of fairness.

The externally visible results of those thoughts can sometimes look
like a lot of goofing off, though.

I'm an embarrassingly picky eater. Olives and bell peppers are
right out. I'm pretty much okay with sharing a lot of stuff, but
you're going to have to ask.

I have what might be the worst transdar in the Western Hemisphere
-- every trans person I've met, I had no idea until they told me
(often over drinks). Apparently, if you present as a particular
gender, I will believe you.

You know what polyamory is and you're ok with dating
a married fellow who practices it.
You're at least a little nerdy.
You can put up with or enjoy a good deal of snappy wordplay,
conversational tangents, and the occasional groaner pun.